Organic Pollutants in Waterways Adjacent to Commencement Bay (Puget Sound)

摘要

The results of a study sponsored by the MESA Puget Sound Project are discussed to: (1) examine the distributions of selected toxic organic compounds in water, suspended matter and sediment collected from selected locations in Hylebos and Blair Waterways, (2) gain a better understanding of the historical accumulation of selected toxic organic substances through analyses of stratified, age-dated sediment cores, and (3) gain a better understanding of the current fluxes of these selected toxic organic substances to these waterways. The data tend to support the hypothesis that several classes of organic compounds have impacted Hylebos and Blair Waterways in the past 25 years. Fluxes of these classes of compounds continue to persist. Once these pollutants are incorporated into sediments, it appears that mechanical processes (dredging activities) and natural processes (biological degradation) have minimal impact on decreasing the persistence of these components in the sediments of these waterways.